Neurodivergent Student Perspectives on Active Learning Instruction
One strength of in-class polling is the ability to engage and assess all students simultaneously. However, not all students experience these interactions the same. I find this study useful for appreciating the differences my students bring to these interactions and for modifying my facilitation to be responsive to those differences.
Clickers are student response systems that allow students to anonymously share their answers to instructor questions. Answering clicker questions supported the metacognition of our participants by prompting them to monitor their own understanding of class content. Participants described especially valuing the instructor’s explanation of why each answer option was correct or incorrect. However, some implementation of clicker questions within STEM courses was problematic for participants, notably when clicker question responses required them to compose short answers within a limited amount of time. Josiah, a participant with a specific learning disorder in reading, and Stewart, a participant with ADHD, explained that they felt they needed more time to type their answers than provided by the instructor. This was especially concerning for Stewart, because his clicker questions were graded for accuracy in one of his classes. Other participants, like Kacey, explained that viewing the class responses to free-response clicker questions is particularly stressful for her due to differences in formatting.